Wednesday: UT Football Season Struggles

Steve Sarkisian’s thoughts on the team’s and Arch’s performances this far

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:04):
Toronto scored in the top half of the first on
an RBI from Guerrero scoring Springer, and the Yankees have
judge on in one out in this in their top
of the in their half of the first. This weekend,
it's Red River, it's OU in Texas. It's another battle.
And about six weeks ago, I thought this was a
pretty easy win for Texas, and I had zero confidence in.

Speaker 2 (00:27):
What OU was gonna be able to do this year.

Speaker 1 (00:30):
Oh You has played significantly better than I thought they would.
They've actually looked good in the games against Michigan and Auburn,
which I think are the litmus tests. The other games
they were gonna win with the B team anyway. But
I think this is this game now, with Texas losing
to Ohio State in Florida, and I said this yesterday,
this becomes a must win for the Longhorns. Oh You

(00:53):
still has a Mulligan, and OU, as we know, has
this gauntlet coming up of games after Texas, and I
think you even conclude to is in the gautlet because
none of these teams are bad. It's Texas South at
South Carolina home with Mississippi at Tennessee at Alabama home
with Missouri and or at home with Missouri and LSU

(01:13):
to finish the season. Maybe the Missouri game is the
easiest game in all of that, and they're not going
to be a pushover. Missouri always gets up for the
OU games and always tends to play well against them.
So the next seven weeks for OU is not only
going to determine their college football status, but it's probably
also going to determine the brat Venable status and whether

(01:34):
or not, you know you keeps him around or not.

Speaker 2 (01:37):
I think he's got to win ten games.

Speaker 1 (01:38):
I think he's got to at least be in the
conversation for the CFP, if not a CFP team in
order for him to stay. And I don't know who
you're going to get that's better. But as we talked
about with the James Franklin situation a little while ago,
this becomes something that OU fans are very passionate about.
And OHU hasn't really been to the dance uh, Penn

(02:01):
State has been Penn's Oh you has not been there.
So this is a critical stretch for them. I think,
Oh You could lose this game and still getting the CFP.
I'm not sure that Texas can So. Sark was asked
this week about evaluating the Florida game and the struggles
they had against the Gators.

Speaker 3 (02:18):
I thought it was a great environment. You know, going
into the game, we knew that the swamp would be
a difficult place to play, and and it was. It
didn't it didn't disappoint, you know. I thought they played
a good football game. We knew going into the game
that they were a very good defensive football team. I
thought we took our shots when we had opportunities to
do them. You know, we hit a couple, we didn't

(02:38):
hit some that we would love to have back.

Speaker 2 (02:40):
You know.

Speaker 3 (02:41):
Obviously, they did a great job at the line of scrimmage.
And I thought would also played a part into the
game was that was probably their best game offensively that
they had played. And and you the defense kind of
got ramped up when you know, they got the lead
and and and scored a few points. And that was
a different position than they had been in earlier in
the season. They've been kind of been behind in some

(03:04):
other games and been close games, been was close, you know,
one score game against Miami with about four or five
minutes to go, one score game against LSU, and so
you know, the fact that they had the lead, I
thought gave their defense some energy as well. So they're
very good team and they're good defense, but I think
what helped them was offensively and then then been able
to run it and then you know, you know, Lagway

(03:25):
getting hot and having those young receivers make some place
for all.

Speaker 1 (03:28):
Right, that's starting the Florida game and the struggles against them. Also,
Arch Manning has had not the season that people expected.
There were a lot of people that have penciled in
to be the Heisman Trophy finalist and contender and number
one pick in next year's draft, and everybody kind.

Speaker 2 (03:44):
Of had to hold their horse a little bit.

Speaker 1 (03:46):
So uh Sart gave us an update of the struggles
that Arch has had in his progress.

Speaker 3 (03:51):
You know, obviously Arch is a is a guy who
can push the ball down the field, and and you know,
we're trying to, especially early on in the season, we're
trying to play to his strength and try to do
some things that he does well. You know, with that
requires holding the ball for half a second or so longer.
You know, so when when when you do that, you
know that stresses the protection some and so you know,

(04:13):
at times when you know, with Quinn, Quinn was an
elite r PO guy, and everyone used to criticize Quinn
because he threw so many balls at or behind a
lot of scrimmage, and so what you try to find
and what you try to do is find balance and
all those things to where you can throw the deep ball,
throw the intermediate ball, and throw the short ball. And
certain games, certain times, certain parts of the season, you know,

(04:36):
you lean into one aspect more than the other. And
if you're throwing a lot of quick game and r
pos and screens, that number is going to be really low.
It might be below too. But if you're holding the
ball and trying to push it down the field, or
you're behind in games and you're scrambling around a little
bit and you're you're you're taking shots down the field,

(04:57):
that number might be higher. So you know, ideally you're
probably the mid twies. That's usually the average, but at
all when it's all said and done, But you know,
I was definitely obviously aware of that number.

Speaker 2 (05:08):
So we'll see how Arch plays.

Speaker 1 (05:10):
And here's the first start against ou And I think
it's kind of ironic and interesting that last year and
even the year before so many people were talking about, well,
especially last year, we're talking about well.

Speaker 2 (05:21):
Art should be the guy.

Speaker 1 (05:22):
Arch is better than Quinn, And now people see why
Quinn was the better player last year and Arch has
still got some ways to go. It's a lot different
when you're playing against inferior competition, against the games that
Arch played a lot.

Speaker 2 (05:34):
In last year.

Speaker 1 (05:35):
All Right, we know that OU in Texas is kind
of special. Here's what Sark had to say about the
game in the Cotton Bowl.

Speaker 3 (05:41):
What makes this game and what separates this game and
makes it so unique is the game being held annually
in Dallas at the Cotton Bowl in the middle of
the State Fair, with the fans being split fifty to
fifty down the middle. It just creates such an environment,
you know, with both schools being just about three hours

(06:02):
from from the stadium, give or take, and it's just
the most unique setting in college football and one that
that you you know, I cherish every opportunity that I get.
I'm getting goosebumps thinking about it right now, because it
is not it's not that home and home where you
go in one stadium then the other. The fact that
it's there every year. Both fan bases do a great

(06:26):
job of showing up and supporting their teams. The smell
of the corn dogs and the turkey legs in the air,
I mean, it's just it's a different it's a different environment,
but it's a very special one.

Speaker 1 (06:36):
It's been since nineteen ninety that I've had the chance
to go back to the EU Texas game. And I
went to everyone between eighty two and ninety except for
eighty eight and eighty nine, so I went seven of
nine years. Whatever it was, and it is a special,
a special situation. There's nothing like it. The Michigan Ohio
State game is played on campus. The Florida Georgia game

(06:59):
is played in Jacksonville, and what is considered the world's
largest side or cocktail party. USC and UCLA go back
and forth between the Coliseum and the Rose Bowl, and
I think it's something different when you basically right into
town from the north and right into town from the south,
and then you turn each other around because O You's
always had the south end zone and their fans are

(07:19):
in that half of the stadium and Texas is in
the north, and both teams have to go up and
down the tunnel, and the tunnels is as legendary as
anything else. Both teams are barking at one another as
they come down the ramp, and I've walked up and
down that ramp a few times in you know, before
the game or after the game to go back into

(07:40):
the locker rooms for interviews and stuff, and it is
it's kind of eerily cool, and I just don't think
there's anything like it. I grew up in the Berry
Switzer era, the Daryl Royal era, the Fred Akers era,
and they all talked about how cool that atmosphere was.
And obviously they've renovated the state a lot in the

(08:00):
last several years, which is amazing as well. And I
think it seats up close to ninety thousand now, so
more and more people can go to that game and
whatever other games that they play there.

Speaker 2 (08:11):
But I just you're right, the Arsarka is right, the.

Speaker 1 (08:15):
Atmosphere of the fair and all the hooplaw around that,
and then the importance of the game. Usually in the past,
for many years, it was who got the recruits. Whoever
won the ou Texas game got the better of the
recruits the next year, so it was important for that
when they weren't in the same conference. Since nineteen ninety four,
they've been in the same conference, so things are a

(08:37):
little bit different because it counts as the conference win.
And I can remember a couple of years ago where
Ou and Texas played again in the championship game and
it wasn't the same. They played in Jerry World in
the conference championship game. Oh you beat them twice that year,
but it was not the same. There's just something special
about the second Saturday in October in the Cotton Bowl

(08:57):
with the State Fair and the hooplaw that goes around it,
and should be a fun matchup this weekend. We talked
there earlier in the week. I don't think this game
will ever be at night. There's a lot of factor
as to why it's not. This has been the eleven
am game or the two thirty game almost forever since
I can remember. I can't remember another time where it

(09:18):
was ever played at a different time, and I think
that's where it will stay. I don't know that you
want that many people in the stadium to have that
much party time before they go to a six o'clock
or seven o'clock game, but this is special and I'm
glad that it stays there. And as much as I'm
a fan of home gamest OU and UT both do

(09:39):
a good job of stacking their schedule to get as
many home games as they can. Outside of this knowing
that they're going to have that neutral site game every
year and it will be part of the next round
of games forever. It makes way too much money for
the schools. Doctor Pepper is a big influence in that,
and so is the State Fair and something don't forget.
The State Fair wants people to go to the games,

(10:01):
and so that's one of the reasons why and don't
want They want him to go to the Fair. So
they want them to come to the game, enjoy the game,
and stay after the game, and a lot of people
do and a lot of people can just kind of
hear the roars from the stadium as they're walking around
Fair Park. All Right, some big college football games coming up,
And could Bill Belichick bail out way before the end
of this year or before his contract is up. We'll

(10:23):
discuss that coming up.